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Old 25-09-2007, 09:44 AM
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OneOfOne (Trevor)
Meteor & fossil collector

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Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Bentleigh
Posts: 1,386
I'm a bit of a "cool CAT" now!

Monday night was clear, getting close to full Moon though, but you can't have everything! So I set the scope up in the back yard. I bought a Lymax "CAT cooler" to help bring the scope to temperature quicker. A few people here use them and think they are great. I was originally going to make something in the garage which would have been very similar, but when I found they exist I thought it was easier to just buy one. Not cheap, but I didn't really have time to spend machining one over a weekend.

Just google "Lymax" and you should come up with something. Also have a look at CN where they have a review.

Because I get up in the mornings around 5:45 to get ready for work, I can't spend hours at night waiting for the scope to cool so I needed a way of getting to temperature quickly. I placed the fan into the back of the C11 around 6:30 and went outside just after 7 to have a look. Prior to this, I would have expected the views to be mediocre at best with such a short cooling period. I was surprised at the improvement, another half an hour on the cooler would probably have brought it very close to ambient but I was too keen to just "get out there". The views were fantastic! Even though there were obviously still some thermals, I was much happier than my early experiences with the scope.

I guess it is up to you to decide if you are comfortable with blowing air into the tube and the "risks" of introducing dust etc. I consider the benefits of getting it to temperature in a short period worthwhile.

So now I am a pretty "cool CAT"
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Old 25-09-2007, 03:43 PM
Bill Bates
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Join Date: Sep 2007
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I think you'd find, if you placed a temp. sensor on the primary, you'd more than likely be X amount of deg's above ambient still. It takes hours to cool an SCT unless one go's active peltier cooling. Blowing ambient air into the OTA just doesn't cut the mustard, as Anthony, David P & Paul Haese has proved time & again.
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